JIM WUNDERMAN has saddled himself with quite a challenge: fixing a state that The Economist magazine called "ungovernable." Wunderman and his group Repair California want to rewrite a state constitution that has previously been amended 512 times into a bloated, contradictory mess.

California's governance process has followed a parallel evolution and now that the economy has tanked, all the nasty underpinnings are sticking out for the world to see. Ventura County Star Sacramento Bureau Chief Timm Herdt, a panelist at the Repair California event held Monday at California Lutheran University in Thousand Oaks, said he has watched one too many deals made in the wee hours of all-night budget sessions in the legislature: "Now they only have one trick in their book and that's sleep deprivation."

A Bay area businessman, Wunderman says he has been joined in his efforts by a cross section of political groups like Common Cause, The New America Foundation, The Courage Campaign, Orange County Lincoln Club and Joint Venture - Silicon Valley Networks. Others are coming on board.

With so much contributing to the state's dysfunction, agreeing on what to fix may take some doing. For example, the Commission on the 21st Century Economy is currently locked in a partisan battle on tax reform. But Wunderman outlined the following possible issues for a state constitutional convention:

• Eliminating the 2/3 requirement to pass a budget (but not necessarily the 2/3 to pass a tax increase.) California is the only state to require a 2/3 vote for both.
  
• Revising the fiscal inequities which exist between Sacramento and local governments because of Prop. 13. "They didn't exactly intend for what's happened to happen," Wunderman said of the drain on funds for cities and counties.
• Election reform. "It's a special-interest controlled mob up in Sacramento right now. ... The short terms in the Assembly have given it rookie-league status so they operate at the behest of special interests and staff, the only ones who have experience."
• Reforming the ballot initiative process. "It wasn't intended to become what it's become. It's been taken over by special interests." Initiatives of the future could have sunset clauses and a requirement to reveal economic impact.
• Requiring performance measures for established programs.
  

THE CURRENT SYSTEM SPECIFIES that the legislature must call for a Constitutional Convention. But Repair California wants to bypass them and go directly to the voters with it. Once the Attorney General's Office issues titles and summaries for a proposed ballot measure, the group has only 150 days to gather 800,000 signatures to qualify it for the November 2010 ballot. The convention would take place in 2011 and the delegates' reform package would be voted on in November of 2012. 

How would the citizen-delegates be chosen? Herb Gooch, a political science professor at CLU, told me he thought they should be selected by Assembly district with all potential candidates voted on by the public.

While seasoned Sacramento hands like Herdt believe special-interest lawsuits will torpedo these efforts, the folks behind Repair California remain optimistic. If the packed room on Monday was any indication, the will is there.

"The people have the power to change this and nothing can stop them," Wunderman said.

THERE'S AN EXPRESSION called "Hawaiian Time" which loosely means you get around to it when you can. It's the laid-back attitude of the island of Kauai which I just spent the last nine days visiting. So in the aloha spirit, please forgive my week-late commentary on last week's state budget vote. Also in the Kauai spirit, I dedicate this blog to the island's unofficial birds: the wild chickens that roam loose everywhere on the island.

My fellow Democrats in the state legislature: with some notable exceptions, you generally lack spinal columns. How is it possible that the majority party with all public polling on its side kowtowed to the minority Republicans and our governor in slashing billions to schools, children's health insurance, state parks, the elderly, sick and disabled?

Why, when recent polling showed that over 70 percent of voters, across party lines, supported a cigarette and tobacco tax increase that could generate $1.2 billion a year, did you discard the idea? (We are number 32 in the nation in such fees. Forty-six other states have raised their cigarette tax rate a collective total of 93 times since California last raised its tax in 1998.)

Why, when other polling showed that 73 percent supported oil extraction fees like every other oil-drilling state has, did you also discount that plan? These fees could generate $1.3 billion a year.

Big Tobacco and Big Oil have spent millions fighting these ideas and you let them win.

Why did you instead agree to let the state borrow or take billions away from our cities and counties, leaving local governments to further cut their own decimated budgets? The City of Ventura alone will lose an estimated $2.76 million this fiscal year to Sacramento's budget debacle, according to a calculation tool provided by the Sacramento Bee. These grabs are sure to trigger lawsuits.

Another tip: Our unions want to save jobs, too. Bring everyone to the table to talk and don't let wedge issues like public employee pension reform be used as last-minute ammo by our governor in the next budget talks.

AND NOW FOR THE EXCEPTIONS:  Kudos to State Sen. Fran Pavley, (D-Agoura Hills) who refused to vote for the raid on local gas taxes which would cut street repairs to cities, according to Star reporter Timm Herdt. The Assembly fought that one back, too. Pavley also voted no on over $334 million in reductions in state spending for developmental services.

More no votes from Democratic Senators Gil Cedillo, Lou Correa, Mark DeSaulnier, and Leland Yee on the main budget bill forced perennial Republican no voters Sam Aanestad, Roy Ashburn, Dennis Hollingsworth, Bob Huff, George Runner, and Tony Strickland into voting yes. This time around they won't be able to issue hypocritical press releases afterward saying they didn't actually vote for these cuts.

Schwarzenegger reclined deeply in his chair, lighted an eight-inch cigar and declared himself "perfectly fine," despite the fiscal debacle and personal heartsickness all around him. "Someone else might walk out of here every day depressed, but I don't walk out of here depressed," Schwarzenegger said. Whatever happens, "I will sit down in my Jacuzzi tonight," he said. "I'm going to lay back with a stogie."

AT JUST A FEW MINUTES before midnight last night in one of the most critical state budget votes in history, Sen. Dave Cox (R-Fair Oaks) just couldn't contain himself. He needed to poke fun at President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg's admonition to all senators to sit down before voting on three stopgap measures designed to keep our state from running out of money.

"I'm just checking, Mr. President. I'm not trying to be a pain in the butt," he joked.

And then came the 25-14 party-line vote, with Sen. Abel Maldonado (R-Santa Maria)  abstaining, which turned down three stopgap bills passed by the Assembly last week, which would effectively keep the state from issuing IOUs to contractors, the disabled, elderly and the poor. Passage of these bills, containing $3.3 billion in cuts, mostly to education, needed to happen before the end of the fiscal year that ended Tuesday. As the cuts were allocated to the previous fiscal year, the opportunity to save was lost at midnight. According to the Los Angeles Times, issuing IOUs will cost the state another $3.4 billion in interest.

The moment of levity at a time of fiscal calamity irked Sen. Mark Leno (D-San Francisco)  "We're about to lose $7 billion in 6 minutes. ... Folks are joking and it's really just beyond belief."

Later, Assemblymember Sam Blakeslee (R-San Luis Obispo), who helped seal the bipartisan deal in the Assembly  told John Myers of KQED-Radio that he was disappointed in the outcome in the Senate. "The Assembly acted responsibly..."

ON A SIDE NOTE: The governor of course vetoed the two budget bills presented to him yesterday. (See below) No surprise.

I received this missive from State Democratic Party Chair John Burton just a few moments ago. I think it's important enough to share verbatim:

Please join me in thanking Assembly and Senate Democrats for passing a common-sense budget before the fiscal year ends tomorrow.

Late last night, Assembly Democrats passed a spending plan that minimizes the cruel cuts advocated by the governor by raising $2 billion in new revenue. Just a few minutes ago, Senate Democrats followed suit, passing a plan that requires Big Tobacco and Big Oil to share in the state budget sacrifice.

Speaker Karen Bass, President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg and their caucuses should be commended for standing firm against the governor's Draconian cuts.

In order to pass the plan, legislative leaders structured it to require a majority vote. That's because Republicans have repeatedly refused to provide the handful of votes necessary to pass the plan with two-thirds support.

Disappointingly, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has vowed to veto the Democrats' budget plan, preferring to play a game of chicken with the budget. He and Legislative Republicans would rather strip health care from nearly one million children and close 220 state parks than ask corporate special interests to pay their fair share.

Now, the onus is on the governor and Republican lawmakers to explain to Californians why they would rather drive the state over a cliff than agree to a budget with a mix of cuts and new revenue.

Please, call Governor Schwarzenegger's office today at (916) 445-2841 or (213) 897-0322. Ask the governor to sign this budget plan, which minimizes the cuts by sharing the sacrifice.

Peace and friendship,

John Burton

IT'S A NIGHTMARE that is likely playing over and over in the heads of tourism bureau directors in beach towns around California: how many visitor dollars will go away if Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger really shuts down our state parks?

In seaside getaways all along the coast, the lure of the ocean draws tourists and their money, but the parking lots and campgrounds at most state-run beaches will be padlocked in a year if the governor's proposal to close more than 80 percent of our state park system is approved. This will save the state $143 million and will likely put businesses dependent on visitors to state parks under water.

According to the California Travel Industry Association, studies have shown that every $1 that funds the state park system returns $2.35 to the General Fund, largely through economic activity in communities surrounding state parks. This is an estimated $350 million.

Ventura Visitors and Convention Bureau Director Jim Luttjohann is finding the possible closures sort of surreal. "It's so huge it's almost unfathomable," he said. He just returned from a state conference on tourism where the mood was very somber. Schwarzenegger, who was scheduled to attend, didn't show up. Other pressing matters kept him elsewhere, his staff explained.

For beachfront hotel owners on state lands, the prospect of fenced-off dunes must seem ludicrous. Luttjohann pointed to one Ventura hotel's positioning near San Buenaventura State Beach, one of those on the closure list.

"We would have a beachside hotel where guests couldn't go to the beach."

ACCORDING TO THE GOVERNOR'S PROPOSAL, in July of 2010, 223 of our 279 state parks will be fenced off and closed to the public. In Ventura County and neighboring areas that would mean the closure of the popular San Buenaventura State Beach, Carpinteria State Beach, Emma Wood State Beach, El Capitan State Beach, Gaviota State Park, Leo Carrillo State Park, Malibu Creek State Park, Malibu Lagoon State Beach, McGrath State Beach, Refugio State Beach, Point Mugu State Park and Will Rogers State Historical Park.

It will also close access to the majestic beauty of Big Basin Redwoods State Park in the Santa Cruz area and Anza-Borrego near San Diego, among many other treasured spots.

But closing a state park doesn't necessarily mean people will stay out, Luttjohan pointed out. There will be issues of safety with no lifeguards available in beach areas, no public restroom facilities and no maintenance. Vagrants could easily set up camp and the area will quickly become blighted.

Closures will force more beachgoers to neighborhoods with beach access unaffected by the budget cuts. Pierpoint Beach in Ventura could see an influx of visitors and beach lanes clogged by parked cars.

BUT THERE IS A SOLUTION. It's just not popular with the minority Republicans, who are against all new fees and taxes, even ones which could keep our state's tourism industry from taking a huge hit. Today the Senate Republicans voted against this plan despite polling done last year showing 74 percent of respondents in favor.

A $15 surcharge on vehicle license fees has been proposed which would allow anyone with a California license plate free day-use to our parks. (For example, the $8 entrance fee to San Buenaventura State Beach in Ventura would be waived.) This would generate enough to keep all our state parks open with enough left over to pay off debt on past park bonds. But it needs a 2/3 vote by both houses of the legislature to pass.

Go visit a state park today while you can. Take a long walk on the beach or in the woods and ask yourself: is this something I want to live without? And how long do we let a stubborn minority ruin the state for the rest of us without offering any of their own solutions?

IN A MOVE THAT WILL SURPRISE absolutely nobody, State Sen. Tony Strickland (R-Moorpark) voted in committee last week against a proposal to tack a tax on cigarettes to raise about $1.2 billion annually for the state's ailing general fund.

The senator joined two other Republicans in voting no on SB 600, despite the fact that polls, such as one conducted after the May vote and another done in April by Field Research Inc. say an overwhelming majority of state residents favor an increase in tobacco taxes and don't want to see drastic cuts to health-care programs for low-income and disabled residents and children.

In the last 10 years, tobacco companies have spent millions in California to keep taxes on tobacco products here among the lowest in the nation. Strickland alone has been the recipient of a whopping $91,550 in tobacco contributions since he entered politics.

According to tobacco-facts.net, California's tobacco tax rate of 87 cents per pack is 32nd in the nation. Rhode Island is No. 1 with $3.46 a pack. Some city governments in other areas of the U.S. have imposed their own taxes as well.

The bill, co authored by Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Pacoima) and Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg (D-Sacramento) has earmarked the revenue to go toward the general fund, lung cancer research, tobacco cessation and control, school-based anti-smoking programs and tobacco enforcement efforts.  SB 600 is sponsored by the American Cancer Society, the American Heart Association and the American Lung Association.

Besides generating much-needed revenue, the bill is expected to discourage smoking among youth, according to a press release issued by Padilla.

"California needs to do more to keep tobacco away from kids," Padilla said.  "With every 10 percent increase in the price of cigarettes, youth smoking is reduced by about seven percent and overall cigarette consumption by about four percent. Raising the tobacco tax reduces youth smoking," he added.

The bill's co-sponsor, the American Cancer Society, argues that the increase is long overdue and since California's last tobacco tax increase, 44 states have increased their tobacco taxes. The American Heart Association, also a co-sponsor, argues that this bill will help reduce heart disease, which is the No. 1 killer in the United States.

Assemblymember Tom Torlakson (D-Antioch) has introduced a similar bill, AB 89.

STRICKLAND HAS A LONG HISTORY of siding with Big Tobacco on legislation, especially when it comes to sales of tobacco products to minors. Beyond the recent votes against bills to curb youth smoking, while in the Assembly he voted against allowing the Department of Health Services to conduct stings on businesses selling tobacco to minors. It passed into law anyway. He also voted against restricting non face-to-face sales of cigarettes. The measure was signed into law by Schwarzenegger.

In May, he voted against SB 4 which prohibits smoking on any state coastal beach or state park unit, except in adjacent parking lots.

The Ventura County Republican Party has been well funded by tobacco dollars as well, with $50,000 deposited into its account in May of 2008 by Altria, the parent company of Philip Morris.

Other county tobacco donations include $28,650 for Assembly member Audra Strickland (R-Moorpark), $20,900 for Assembly member Cameron Smyth (R-Santa Clarita), and $18,900 for Sen. George Runner (R-Lancaster). None of the current Democratic legislators have accepted tobacco money.

Watch to see how all these politicians vote when the bills come before them.

SB 600 is opposed by California Chamber of Commerce, California Black Chamber of Commerce, the Black Chamber of Commerce of the San Fernando Valley, the Assn. for Los Angeles Deputy Sheriffs, the California Taxpayers Assn. and the Neighborhood Market Assn. All these groups have received tobacco contributions, according to tobacco-facts.net.

Of the two senators who sided with Strickland in the Senate Health Committee, both have also accepted tobacco money. Sen. Dave Cox (R-Fair Oaks) accepted $26,800 and Sen. Sam Aanestad (R-Grass Valley) took $10,100.

UPDATE: Today Tony Strickland finally added his name to the list of senators willing to take a pay cut. For a look at the list, go here. IN MORE INTERESTING NEWS: It looks like State Sen. George Runner (R-Lancaster), who represents the cities of Fillmore, Santa Paula and Piru, has gotten himself into a bit of hot water. Read the story in the Sacramento Bee here.

I HAVE A NEW HERO and it's California State Assembly Budget Committee Chair Noreen Evans (D-Santa Rosa). She made this video on the state's budget debacle and it's just spot on.

Since February I have been trying to explain to various bloggers via the comments section how we got into this mess. I now have a standard three-paragraph explanation that I have resorted to cutting and pasting over and over and over and over. It's getting a little tedious. (And no, it's not "fraud, waste and abuse" repeated 50 times.)

So you can probably imagine how delighted I was when I saw Evans' video. From those pesky propositions, two-thirds vote impasse and ballooning prison budgets to Grover Norquist and his bathtub, it's all here. Be sure to note section on bags of campaign cash and candidates and refer to my entry below.

Please, just take a few minutes from your day and watch this. Tony? Audra? You, too.



AS I WRITE THIS, all the ballot propositions used to precariously piece together our state budget back in February are going down in flames. And none of us are surprised.

Too complicated for the average voter to understand, two undid the good work of previous propositions and one tinkered with the formula of another. Another enraged partisans on both sides of the aisle, which also doomed its companion measure.

It looks like only Prop.1F has passed, a token measure which keeps electeds from getting pay raises in budget deficit years. This would result in "minor savings," according to the Legislative Analyst's Office.

So it's back to the drawing board with a meeting of the "Big Five" legislative leaders again, which last time produced this ill-fated group of propositions and $10 billion in cuts to public schools. Since that time, though, the Republicans have nearly purged their leadership ranks of anyone reasonable. 

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's 2009-10 May Revision General Fund Proposals contain many ideas to plug the now $21.3 billion gap, including another $2.3 billion cut to schools, which will be partially offset by one-time federal stimulus money in certain categories.

While few will likely miss the Bureau of Naturopathic Medicine if it shuts down, many other proposals have already drawn fire, including one to override the normal regulatory processes and allow the first new offshore oil lease in 40 years off state waters near Santa Barbara and another to sell the Ventura County Fairgrounds.

IS CALIFORNIA REALLY ungovernable? The Economist magazine spells out a perfect storm of a two-thirds budget vote requirement and extreme partisanship nurtured by gerrymanded districts, all complicated by term limits and contrary voter-approved ballot initiatives which lock in funding. But it's nothing those of us who are paying attention didn't already know.

What is mentioned less often is that people whose jobs, livelihoods and power depend on special-interest cash are making the decisions for us. And while innate ideology would account for some of the decisions made in Sacramento, the real fear of being unable to raise enough money and support to be elected often drives politicians nationwide to make decisions they would not normally make if campaigns were publicly financed.

One only has to look at the very reasoned budget alternatives coming from the Legislative Analyst's Office to see that good sense and intellect can prevail in a non-partisan, non-threatening, non-special interest atmosphere.

Redistricting and open primaries, already in the pipeline, could help elect reasonable moderate candidates. There is talk of a constitutional convention. But until we have solid campaign finance reform, California's governing dysfunction will continue to be exacerbated by special-interest pressures.

There are two measures out there right now to address this issue and both deserve our support. The California Fair Elections Act will appear on the June 2010 ballot and another measure making its way through Congress, the Fair Elections Now Act, is already enjoying bipartisan support.

They can't come soon enough for California.